Travel Tips -
With Children

If your child is traveling alone, you should write
all the numbers that would be helpful for the child
on a note, or in a little date book for when she/he
arrives at the final destination.

Don't count on your toddler being willing to eat
airline meals and snacks! Little chewy fruit snacks
work great during takeoff and landing for keeping
his ears comfortable, and the different shapes keep
him interested.

One of the best toys we have found for keeping our
toddler occupied on trips is a travel-sized MagnaDoodle.
When he drops the 'pen', it is attached by string;
there are no pieces to lose; and he doesn't run out
of paper. We write easy words on it, and he learns
to read them, and gets really excited when he knows
one ... or, we draw simple pictures and he figures
those out. It should be great for kids of all ages
- Mommy & Daddy have fun with it, too!

Look into purchasing some Goodnites. These protect
kids from accidents (which tend to happen often while
travelling) but are more underwear-like. They fit
kids over 125lbs. Any kids who you are travelling
with (especially in the car) should wear them just
in case. It can really save clothes and car interiors
in heavy traffic. Goodnites can fit kids anywhere
from 3 to 16 years old too.

When traveling with children by air, if at all possible
book at non-peak times (late at night, midday and
Monday to Wednesday). This gives you a chance at
a free seat for your child to stretch out and sleep.
Arrive at the airport early. Sprints down an endless
terminal are difficult enough, but nearly impossible
when packing a baby on your back and holding a small
child's hand. When traveling by car and you bring
along "treats" NEVER give out them out
too fast! Try every hour. You might even take a timer.

When travelling with small children, take along
a package of outlet covers. Most hotel rooms neglect
to provide these little shock savers, and there are
often outlets placed tantalizingly at child height.
For rooms equipped with stoves/ ovens, remember to
bring knob covers, or simply remove the knobs while
not in use.

When travelling with children, be sure to pack a
change of clothes for yourself. Time and again my
children have spilled sticky drinks all over me on
the plane and I was glad I had thought to bring extra
clothes for myself! Also it helps to premake airsickness
bags at home as the ones the airlines provide are
not always there. Another tip--put some cold drinks
such as Capri Sun or juice boxes in your carry-on.
If your child is thirsty and it will be a while for
the drink steward to come down the isle, you will
be glad you have them.

While traveling, particularly with small, wandering
children, one worry seems to enter all our minds; "What
happens if I loose my child?" Here's a tip that
will help defray some of that worry. Before starting
on the trip, visit a local hospital and ask if they
will make one of those plastic bracelets for each
of your children. Usually, they will. Then you can
put whatever information you'd like on a slip of
paper and insert it into the bracelet. If you're
traveling to/through foreign countries, you may want
to put the information in several languages.

The most successful idea we use is crafting in the
car. We use serving trays to create their crafts
on top of. Before we leave, I prepare all of the
projects we can make, and once we are travelling,
it is up to them. The serving trays also work wonderfully
for puzzles, board games, and play dough.

Go to the dollar store and buy a bunch of cheap
make-up, toys, and anything that looks like fun for
kids (age-appropriate items) and if they don't whine,
argue, complain, or attempt to hurt each other -
they get prizes every 50 miles or every 45 minutes.
When they were really young we did this every 30
minutes. It's a lot of fun, and they have all new
stuff to use on their vacation.

When traveling in the car or on an airplane, a great
entertainer reusable stickers. Your children can
stick and restick them on the windows of the car
or airplane. Also, lollipops are good for earaches
during flying. I travel with my 2-year-old at least
once a year by airplane, and when we have to change
airplanes, I put a safety bracelet on her connecting
her to me. That way I can put my backpack on my back,
she's connected to my wrist, and my hands are free
to carry her carseat. By the way, I tell her it's
a bracelet - and I point out that I am wearing one,
too, and that she can take it off when we reach the
next gate.

Take lots of children's stories and music on tapes,
plenty of cheap toys, and new books.

Wrap individual goldfish, gummi bears, and (a small
amount) of M&M's individually in aluminum foil.
Small children will delight in unwrapping them to
see what's inside. This is a great tip for plane
rides. (Make sure to keep a trash bag next to him,
though).

When taking long road trips with younger children
(6 and younger) have them wear diapers or pull-ups
(or for older kids, goodnites) while riding in the
car. This has saved us from many accidents. If they
refuse to wear them, keep a couple in the glove box
and have them put the diaper on when they need to
go.

Sounds obvious, but ... Make sure you have your
children go to the bathroom before you leave the
airport - and have something for them to do so you
have a nice flight there and back. Good Luck!!!!

Always keep a recent photo of your child in your
wallet - in case you loose them in a crowed area,
and need help in locating them.

When travelling with children, especially if one
parent only may accompany the child(ren) out of the
country - make sure that you have a signed and notarized
letter from both parents stating that permission
is given to the accompanying parent (or temporary
guardian) to take the child out of the country. Make
sure also that the accompanying parent or guardian
also has the necessary medical release forms for
said child(ren). This is especially important when
travelling to Mexico. Travel agents or the airline
should have these forms available.

To keep children entertained and well behaved during
long airplane trips, buy a small carry on (children's
size), with wheels. Go to an "everything is
a dollar" store, and fill the bag with "surprises".
Have the children carry/roll the bag around the airport
etc., and during the filght, give them one surprise
every 30 minutes or so. You will be amazed at how
entertained they can stay, and perhaps give you a
chance to "catch a nap".

Pack an entire day's worth of clothing, a change
of clothes, sufficient disposable diapers, and food
in a Ziploc bag. Make one Ziploc bag for each day
of travel. Each day, one outfit goes on baby, the
rest of the supplies go in the diaper bag and you
are ready to go.

When traveling with children with medical concerns
... Make sure they have their own identification,
whether it be a medical necklace or an identification
card. Make sure it has your telephone number, the
name and number of their physician, and their medical
concerns.

When travelling with children, write down the name,
address and telephone number of the place you are
staying at on a piece of paper, and "I'm lost,
please call my parents" or something of the
sort, and make sure your child carries it in his/her
pocket/wallet. Tell the child that whenever he or
she gets lost, he/she should hand the piece of paper
to a woman (make sure your child hands it to a woman,
much safer than a man usually!) so someone can help
them. I've found children don't remember hotel or
street names, while a piece of paper makes sure they
get it right.

Buy hand sanitizer from Bath & Body Works or
Linens 'n Things - it works without water and is
perfect for cleaning grimy, sticky hands when you
can't find a restroom.

Buy an inexpensive camera (with flash) for children
old enough to use it. The trip is then photographed
from the child's prospective. My daughter absolutely
adores doing this. She then creates a memory book
with her photos.

Use baby wipes not only for wiping hands, face,
etc., but also for getting out stains on clothing.

For long road trips with children, take a little
spiral notebook and ahead of the trip write down
names of all the cities you will be passing through.
Then on the trip, as you get to each city, point
it out to them and they can check it off their list.
They get sort of a visual idea of how much more of
the trip they have left and it gives them something
to do every so often. On the return trip, they start
at the bottom of the list and work backward. This
worked really well with a six and eight year old
on a trip from Michigan to Florida.

To help our kids remember their trip in their own
words we buy postcards of the places we go and on
the back of each one they write down whatever they
want to remember. At the end of the trip we punch
a hole in the corner of the postcards and put them
on a ring so they have their own special mementos
of the vacation.

Prior to your trip, prepare a homemade "book" with
a page for each day you will be gone. Write the day/date
at the top of each page. As you travel, your child
can use any sit-down time to fill in what you are
doing that day, draw pictures of interesting things
you saw, paste brochures, or get the autographs of
anyone - from your waiter to the occasional celebrity!
Your book will be just the thing to share with your
friends when you return.

Here is a great activity for long road trips with
the whole family: Write down the names of your children's
favorite songs on separate pieces of paper. Mix them
up in a small box or bag (an empty wipes container
works great!) While you are traveling, have your
children take turns pulling one piece of paper out
of the box. Everyone in the car has to sing the song
that's written on the paper.

Car Doldrums: There's nothing like a good long stretch
to help relieve car seat cramps. If your children
are in booster or car seats, they will definitely
need to move around every so often. Look for parks,
rest stops and other locations that offer not only
the chance to stand up, but an opportunity to play.
Rule of thumb: a 20-minute break for every two hours
on the road -especially with little ones.

Snack-Time Tips: Juice boxes, easy-to-eat snacks,
wipes, napkins and trash bags are important. Car
trips are the perfect opportunity to use those Tupperware
containers that are really too small to be useful
at home. Be sure to prepackage each snack for each
child - that way you're not trying to pass food back
and forth.

Games: You played them as a youth - now it's your
chance to pass along the family favorites to the
young un's. The license game - ever so popular on
those cross country journeys - would work for the
preteen set. Toddlers and preschoolers can help learn
their colors by identifying the colors of cars. And
be sure you learn a few family type songs. Even if
your voice isn't of concert quality, you're sure
to at least amuse your children. And if that doesn't
work, you can always pawn them off on other drivers
by getting them to wave to people from the back seat!

Airplane Advice: Pack some finger foods, like fruit,
pretzels and cereal for your children to enjoy during
the flight. These items might help them adjust to
in-cabin pressure changes. For younger children,
try using bottles, "sippy cups" or pacifiers
to help ease inner ear pressure. For older children,
chewing gum can serve the same purpose.

Prepare your children in advance for the trip you
will be taking. If you are traveling by car or plane,
you can show them on a map the route you will be
taking. Even young children enjoy following the route
on a map. Show your children travel brochures on
the places you will be visiting, and if you can check
out some books from your local library about where
you will be going, you can use them too.

Memory making is a very important part of your trip.
Your children can enjoy creating their own special
memories. Have them keep a scrapbook or journal for
your vacation. They can cut pictures out of brochures
and paste them in, keep their ticket stubs, have
new friends they meet sign their books, and much
more! Even young children can color or draw things
to represent what they have seen on the trip. Mom
and Dad can help the younger ones by writing down
some of the things they really enjoyed doing on their
trip.

If you are going to fly, have younger children's
ears checked before you leave. Nobody wants to travel
with a child who has an ear infection.

In planning a road trip with younger children, prepare
surprise packets for them to open periodically during
the trip. Perhaps you could plan for two a day -
one midmorning, the other mid-afternoon. In these
packets could be such items as books, travel games,
snacks, small toys. This gives the child something
to anticipate . . . as well as something to do.